24 Hours
by Andorian Ice Princess-AIP
Summary: AU a lot can happen in one day but when Casey realizes that Severide has been missing for longer than expected he takes action. Will he get to his friend in time? Or will 24 prove to be someone's final number? Based on eppy 2.06 'Joyriding' Contains some spoilers (missing broment scenes)


**Title: 24 Hours **

**Summary: **AU a lot can happen in one day but when Casey realizes that Severide has been missing for longer than expected he takes action. Will he get to his friend in time? Or will 24 prove to be someone's final number? Based on eppy 2.06 'Joyriding' Contains some spoilers (missing broment scenes)

**Disclaimer: **Chicago Fire and its characters are the property of Dick Wolfe, NBC and….well sadly not me if so then the ever yummy Lt. Casey would be all mine and we'd have a few sweet broments EVERY single eppy!

**A/N:** Okay I did love that Shay found Severide and him uprighting that backhoe but I still wished our Teamsevasey had at least talked to each other. I mean Kelly is missing a whole day and they don't even have Matt ask Boden or even Shay or show up at the hospital? I kinda struggled with this and then figured was trying to focus on two stories in one one shot and that was frustrating for such a short piece. So I'm going to really focus on Kelly/Nathan and Matt and leave the bulk of the Casey/Griffin scenes for Growing Pains and hope that's okay. AND Alice figured a way to make this an AU rescue with a bit more danger in it and hope you all like it a little.

_Note: "Words in double quotes and italics taken directly from the eppy"_

* * *

Between Shay's lame girlfriend, his father's parental neglect and Boden's impending resignation, all he wanted to do that morning was get out and run…run until every last vestige of pent-up adrenaline had worn off and then head into work with a clear head. At least…that was the plan. But when he came across an almost unbelievable scene; a young boy, pinned in an overturned backhoe in a deserted construction site – everything changed in an instant.

_"Hey! Hey hold on! What's your name?"_

_"Na-nathan. Please help…my arm hurts. I'm stuck. Help me."_

_"Hey can you wiggle your toes for me? Okay good. Now hold on I'm going to get you out of there," Severide states in haste as he looks at the young boy pinned in the mangled debris. "I need you to close your eyes and cover your face for me."_

After he breaks the glass, Severide quickly takes stock of the current predicament before his brain commands his limbs to take action. Leg is trapped. Free his leg and then work on the arm. However, it wasn't quite as easy as planned as the seat itself was pinning his leg and that was further hampered by the position of the machine. Unless he up-righted the backhoe; the young boy was doomed. Severide tries once more; using a piece of rebar as a lever to try to free Nathan's legs. But a blood-curdling scream forces him to back away in haste.

_"Okay…okay…I'm coming back down. Let me see your arm okay?"_

_"It…really hurts. Please help me."_

Tense situations. Life and death situations. Near death situations. Death. He wasn't unnerved by the situation as he had pulled people from other terrifying situations; some even on fire with flesh sizzling in his ear. But it was the desperate cries for help…the pleading from the young boy that was forcing his panic to literally pulse through his veins. He looks at the time. 9am. Tuesday morning. He leans back for a few seconds hoping for his pulse to slow and the blood racing to his head to pause for a few seconds so he could formulate a good plan. No phone. No way to call for help outside of his own voice. Trapped and alone. _Think Kelly think! _He commands himself as he looks down at the scared boy at his feet. Griffin. Griffin's coming to the fire hall today. He'll ask about me. Matt will notice I'm late. He'll call. He'll come looking. He will right? Damn it, Matt you hafta find us.

_"HELP US! SOMEBODY HELP US!" _

XXXXXXXX

Casey offers a wave to Christie, happy when she called him and told him that Griffin asked to be dropped off at the Firehouse for a shift with his Uncle Matt. It was the last day of this shift set and he told Christie, Griffin could spend the day with him and then he'd take him home and pick up Ben along the way. Ben wanted to spend time with his friend Ricky and she said she'd gladly take Ben to his friends and then have him spend the night at her place if Griffin wanted to experience the whole deal and actually sleep in the same bed as his father.

_"Thanks for coming," _Casey greets Griffin with a happy smile as he gathers his young charge into his arms for a friendly but brief hug. "_Ready do a shift_?"

This time Griffin's expression was one of excited anticipation. It was such a marked difference from the time before when he sat outside on the bench with a stony expression while Ben was inside laughing and having a good time with Kelly. This time Griffin was all smiles and curiosity. With the rat Spellman gone, Casey is able to offer Griffin a real hands-on feel of the truck and know he won't get in trouble like the time Kelly did with Ben when Spellman was still there – ready to stab them all in the back.

"Alight…up you go," Casey smiles as he hoists Griffin up into the belly of the big truck, Griffin easily settling in to where Joe Cruz normally sits when they are in motion. "Well…what do you think?"

"It's really cool…and really big," Griffin replies as Casey offers a grin and a nod and hops up on the steps. He starts to explain about the various gears and knobs and that it took a special license to drive such a monstrous vehicle. Heather had told him in no uncertain terms that she was very much in favor of discouraging both her boys from following in their father's professional footsteps, but Casey knows that he's not about to dampen his enthusiasm for a job he loves so much.

"Come on, I'll show you the rest of the House."

"Okay. Can I see your office?"

"Sure thing. Come with me," Casey agrees as he helps Griffin down from the seat of Truck 81 and they head toward the entrance to leave the vehicle bays and head inside.

"And Uncle Kelly's. When's he coming in?"

"Uh…soon. I think Shay said he went for a run this morning so he's just a few minutes late. He'll be here," Casey pauses as he looks down at his watch, offering it a small frown. But he tells himself that it wasn't that big a deal yet and Kelly probably had a few other things to take care of as well; not to mention the ongoing strife with his father's personal life which included the new role of soon to be temporary Chief at Firehouse 51. _I'm sure he's okay…just a bit behind. Kelly will be here soon._

XXXXXXXX

"HELLO! SOMEBODY!" Severide calls before his lungs slightly constrict. He looks down at the young boy and growls; his fingers unable to pull away from the severed artery as he knows if he stops applying pressure the boy will bleed out and all this would be for nothing. His brain tries to drown out the previous screams from when he pulled the rebar out but he knows they'll probably haunt his dreams for a few nights to come – that is if they survived this, otherwise he'd be haunted by death – a death he didn't want to have a part of. Survival was his only thought right now.

_"Hey Nathan, do you have a phone?"_

_"Yeah…it's in my backpack."_

_"Where?"_

_"I put it down…over there somewhere," Nathan weakly nods toward the blue fabric blob several meters away._

_"Okay Nathan. You've been a superhero so far. But I gotta ask you to dig a bit deeper and help me out. I need you to pinch off the artery yourself. Just for a few seconds. Just think of it as you're holding a piece of spaghetti."_

_"I use a fork for spaghetti."_

_"Atta boy. There you go. Pinch hard. You got it."_

_"AHHHh! It hurts so bad."_

_"I know."_

_"Just hold your hand as still as possible until I get back. You're doing great."_

Severide quickly pulls his fingers away and then helps Nathan affix his to his spurting artery. He races toward the blue knapsack where the boy had left it; dropped it haphazardly when he decided to skip school and take an unguarded backhoe for a joyride. The choice had so far proved to be deadly.

_"Nathan? How you doin' bud?"_ Severide asks as he notices the boys frame limp and a tad more listless than previously. Then without warning Nathan lets so and slumps back down, offering a whispered, _"I'm sorry."_

_"No, you're doing great. You're staying tough for me."_

"Did you get my phone?"

"Yeah hold on," Severide lightly grunts as he bends back down into his original position, quickly fishing through the knapsack until the phone makes itself known. However, his elation is quickly dashed to pieces when he sees the phone is busted and useable. He mutters an angry curse under his breath and then looks around for any signs of life. But he knows there isn't much which is why he chooses this route in the first place – less people and less city noise equals more time for him to clear his head and think through important matters in life; his father, his roommate, his career and his friends.

"Does it work?" Nathan dares to ask.

"No, it's um…it's busted. But you gotta stay with me okay. You just gotta stay with me."

"Will anyone find us in time?"

_In time…_how fateful and utterly devastating those words sounded. What could he tell him? He didn't even know himself. He had left his stupid phone in the glove box of his car so he wouldn't worry about it falling out; so put off by tangling with Shay's new girlfriend Devon and then hearing from his father's new wife, Beth that he had been lying to him for weeks – his mind wasn't where it normally would be for a run. Normally he'd have taken his phone, placed the call by now and could tell his young friend that help was on it's way. He couldn't. He'd have to lie, it was better than the truth. He needed to keep hope alive and the truth wasn't very hopeful.

"Everything's going to be okay."

"How do you know?"

"We just gotta believe that," Severide tries to assure him as he feels his stomach rumbling a little. He looks at the time and groans. By now he'd be missed right? _Come on Matt….you gotta know I'd be in by now._

XXXXXXXX

Casey looks at his watch as they get back from the accident scene on the overpass and frowns. _Kelly's usually not this late, _he inwardly muses as he hops off the truck. He heads first to find Chief Boden, maybe Severide called in and had decided to take a personal day.

"No. I've left a few messages and so has Shay. He better have a damn good reason for this," Boden huffs as he looks at Casey in concern.

"I know that look Chief. What's going on?"

"I'll tell you later. How's Griffin?"

"He's…" Casey pauses as he looks around and then back at Boden with a small shrug. "I'm not sure. I'll catch you later."

Casey pulls away from Boden and goes in search of Griffin calling Severide along the way. "Hey Kelly…you playing hooky today? Griffin wants a ride in the squad truck. Let me know where you are."

Casey hangs up, looking at Severide's darkened office with a concerned expression. _He knew Griffin was coming in today, what's going on? _He reaches his office only to see Griffin not waiting where he had told him. He turns and heads back to search; his mind however, worried about Severide's tardiness. _Where is he?_

XXXXXXXX

"HEY! STOP!" Severide shouts as the car races away, leaving a trail of dust for the beleaguered firefighter to choke on. "Ah damn no!" Severide curses as he wastes no time in turning and racing back to Nathan. He thinks about leaving the boy and heading back to his car to get his phone. _I could be there and back already…I have to do this_, he tells himself firmly. But as soon as he gets back to the top of the busted piece of equipment, his lungs gasp as he sees that Nathan has let go of his punctured artery and has bled out even more. Going to the car now and leaving the young boy alone in such a depleated condition was out of the question.

_"Hey you gotta wake up buddy! You gotta wake up!" _Severide's anxious voice chants over and over as he jumps back down into the belly of the backhoe. Nathan was limp, in shock and slipping in and out of consciousness with every passing second. Time was running out and he was frantic now to not let this young life just pass away before his eyes.

"Nathan!" Severide shouts once more as Nathan's eyes slightly flutter. "Okay that's it…you gotta stay with me okay?"

"Okay."

But there were to be no easy breaks this time as when Severide shifts his weight to try to find some better leverage to try to get Nathan out from under the seats again, a piece of metal in the shape of a ladder, dislodges and hurls toward his right hand, slicing open the skin from the middle of his forearm down to his wrist, but even worse, pinning the fabric to the floor and ensuring his hand was trapped and he too was now stuck.

Severide's lips utter an anguished cry before he lifts his head and yells, "_HELPPPP!"_

XXXXXXXX

Casey leaves Boden's office with a head full of steam._ Boden's leaving and Benny's coming…this…where the hell is Kelly? Did he know about this? Is that why he's avoiding today? He couldn't look Boden in the eye? _Casey shakes his head as he nears Severide's office and growls; his eyes lingering on the darkened space before he heads for his own office. He peers inside and notices the red light on the phone is not blinking – no messages.

"Shay!" Casey calls out as Shay comes into his line of sight. "You heard from Kelly yet?"

"Million dollar question of the day," she retorts with a small huff. "Sorry we all got off to a bad start this morning."

"Did he take the day off?"

"I don't know. Kelly's not…"

"I know he wouldn't just play games like this, no matter what. Okay thanks," Casey nods as Shay takes her leave. _He wouldn't…_his brain chants once more. Despite the political nonsense with Benny and McLeod he knows Kelly Severide's integrity to his job was first and foremost. _Something's wrong, _Casey inwardly surmises as he spies Griffin at the end of the hallway staring at some plagues on the wall. But he couldn't just leave the young boy in the care of someone else while he went to see if Kelly was perhaps back at home. Griffin was his responsibility for the day and he'd already been called away.

He looks at the time and frowns; the growing feeling of concern starting to really gnaw at the pit of his stomach. _Come on Kelly…where are you? _

XXXXXXXX

_"How we doing Nathan? You hanging in there? You still with me?"_

_"I'm here."_

_"I don't want you to give up on me. I want you to promise me kid."_

_"I promise."_

"Good boy," Severide nods, offering a tight smile as he tries once more to wiggle free of his own tight situation. _The only way you'll get free is to upright this damn thing, _his mind reminds him firmly. But with one hand trapped and the other keeping the boy alive what could he do? _First off…find a way to keep that artery closed without you. _Severide eyes Nathan's knapsack and reaches for it with his foot. First attempt – nothing.

"Ah damn it come on," Severide grumbles as he tries once more. This time he gets it. Telling Nathan to hold the artery once more, he starts to fish inside the fabric bag; his mind literally leaping for joy as he finds a small binder clip.

"Okay…this might feel uncomfortable," he offers with a dry smirk as Nathan looks up in concern. "I know…there," Severide pinches closed the end of the artery, stopping the flow of precious life blood and finally freeing his hand for good. "Okay let's see what else you got in here…Nathan…"

"Yeah?"

_"So what were you doing joyriding this thing anyways?" Severide asks as he slowly fishes through the bag._

_"My father. is in construction. He promised me over and over he'd teach me how to drive a loader. That was before he left. I figured I'd teach myself so that if he ever came back I could show him."_

Severide hears the lost despondency in the boy's tone and feels his heart sink. He knows the feeling. All to well and in that moment he realizes there's something more he and the young boy can bond over besides being in a dire situation.

_"My dad was a firefighter but um…but he left and now I am too, but I did it without his help." _

_"Is it hard?"_

_"Nah. Its' the best job in the world. Look I tell you what. As soon as we get out of here, I'll take you down to the firehouse, we'll go for a ride in the truck. How does that sound?"_

_"Cool."_

"Okay good, but you gotta stay with me okay? I'll keep talkin' if you promise you'll keep listening."

"I promise."

"Good."

Severide casts his gaze outside as the sun dips below the last tall landmark, the sky turning from a warm orangey glow to a cool pale blue. Night was coming. How cold would it get? He couldn't even take his hoodie off to warm up the boy, would he die during the night? With no lights and even less traffic than the small amount during the day, the situation was getting worse before it was getting better.

_Where the hell is Matt…he should have started looking by now right?_

"SOMEONE! HELP US!"

XXXXXXXX

"Aren't you going to have any supper Uncle Matt?" Griffin asks as he sits down into a nearby chair and looks up in wonder.

"I uh…wait here with Cruz, I gotta check on something," Casey offers Griffin a tight lipped smile before he heads back toward his office, shaking his head and muttering to himself that Kelly wasn't usually this reckless with his time and certainly wasn't the type to just ignore repeated calls or childishly sulk if something wasn't going his way. _He's faced professional crap before…this is…something's up._

"Matt…"

"Chief, I'm worried. It's dark now and I haven't heard from him since early this morning. We both know Kelly would never play these kinds of games. No matter what's going down, he'd be here."

"You talk to Shay?"

"She's out on a call with Dawson and it could be a while. I'd go and check his place but I have Griffin and…"

"Go. Check his place and come back," Boden instructs. "I'll watch over Griffin. That was part of the promise right? Offering help when needed? Your gut tells you something's wrong. Go and check it out."

"Be back as soon as I can."

Boden gives Casey a nod of confirmation and it's all he needs to duck into his office, grab his jacket and race for the back door, keys ready and mind racing. He'd stop by Kelly's new apartment first and then the gym….otherwise…_where the hell could he be?_

XXXXXXXX

_"Hey Nathan. How did you start this thing buddy? There's no key. Nathan! Hey!"_

_"I uh…used something metal to connect the starter."_

"Metal…what? What did you use?"

_"Screwdriver. _I don't know where it went."

Severide holds back a dissatisfied grunt as he starts to frantically look around, the last vestiges of daylight, combined with the distant city light glow was enabling him to see it a little. His eyes finally settle on the object of his search, his brain yelling at his free arm to try to reach it. His entire body strains upward…pulling as best he can but slumping back down in defeat. _Try again…you can't give up! His life depends on it!_

But just as he's about to reach for it…he stops…and listens…a noise…but not the kind of noise he wants to hear. And as if things couldn't get worse, his heart starts to race faster as he realizes the fresh smell of blood has drawn two curious and hungry coyotes.

"Oh damn no," Severide whispers as he hears the yips getting closer. _Matt!_

XXXXXXXX

"Kelly? You in there?" Casey knocks loudly on Severide's apartment door, cursing the quiet that he gets in return. He pulls his phone and dials Kelly's home number, sure enough able to hear the rings through the wood but grumbling when he only gets voice mail. Still nothing on his cell.

"Something's wrong…" Casey huffs as he heads back outside. He slowly circles the block, looking for Severide's car, his agitation starting to gain momentum. Since they had moved to a new apartment, he wasn't sure where Severide would go jogging now and Shay was still out and not returning his calls.

He actually considers calling Antonio and putting out an APB but that's just a thought – Severide probably wasn't really missing, only avoiding them for who knows what reason. "But he wouldn't play these games…he hates head games," Casey insists as he nears the firehouse. He stops his truck and looks inside as Griffin plays on the back of Truck 81 with Cruz and Otis. He knows Griffin would be in good hands if he left…but where could he go? He had gotten a call from Boden saying he called Benny and asked if he'd seen Kelly and he informed him he had gotten an early morning call but that was it.

No one knew where Kelly Severide was.

"This…this isn't good," Casey whispers as he parks his truck and gets out. "Something's wrong."

XXXXXXXX

"HEY! GET LOST!"

"Kelly I'm scared…what if they…"

"GET LOST!" Severide shouts as the coyotes come a bit closer. Thankfully the opening was at the top and the mangy animals wouldn't be able to climb up; despite a few attempts however. But Nathan was scared and he couldn't blame him. This was the last thing he wanted for the scared young man. "Nathan?"

"Yeah I'm here. I don't like…their sounds."

"They are kinda….scary."

"Are you scared?"

Severide looks down at his pale face, dark eyes looking up in wonder. He was scared, but how could he tell him that? He has to be strong and in control…the boy was depending on him for that.

"It's okay…to be scared," Nathan quickly qualifies in a small tone as Severide's face softens.

"You know being scared keeps you alert," Severide answers in truth. He uses the book to bang against the side of the window, hoping to scare the creatures away. It doesn't work.

"Can they get in?"

This he could answer with certainty. "No. I had to climb up into this and there is no way their arms work like that," he offers somewhat lightly. "We're safe from them."

"Am I going to die here?" Nathan asks sadly.

"No…hey look at me," Severide firmly demands as Nathan looks up in misery. "No okay? In fact, we'll be laughing with your mom tomorrow about the scary coyotes and…hey look at me."

"I'm tired."

"I know you're tired…I'm tired too okay. I just…you need to stay with me."

"Tell me your first day…on the job."

"First day…okay I can do that. You just gotta promise me you'll stay awake for it all, okay?"

"I promise."

Severide takes a deep breath, his brain trying to drown out the yips from the coyotes outside and telling himself that someone…someone had to be looking for him. They were right?

XXXXXXXX

"Your pacing is making me dizzy," Griffin comments as he sits on the bed and watches Casey stop and offer him a small smile.

"I'm worried about Uncle Kelly."

"Do you think he's hurt?"

"I…I don't know but it's not like him to be gone this long and not contact anyone."

"Will he be okay?"

"I hope so," Casey replies softly. "Why don't you try to get some sleep okay?"

"Are you going to sleep?"

"I have some paperwork to finish up and then I will," Casey replies with a small smile as he sits down beside Griffin on the small single beg.

"I hope he's going to be okay."

"Me too," Casey whispers as his arm encircles Griffin's shoulders, he pulls him close and then rests his head atop his. A few moments later, Casey pulls the blanket over Griffin's frame, turns off the light and whispers goodnight before he takes his leave.

He nears his office with a stomach full of agitation. _Where's Kelly…something's happened…he'd have called by now if he could…_his mind correctly reasons as he slumps down into his office chair. He tries to push aside images of his friend lying in a ditch somewhere…dark…cold and unable to call for help. Worst case scenario? Dea…._don't finish the word! He's not dead!_

Casey shakes his head as he takes a sip of his warm coffee; his eyes drifting toward a picture of him and Kelly with the boys taken at a park last week; all four of them smiling and happy. "You can't leave them…" his voice trails off as he looks up at the clock. Unless he heard from Kelly soon, or kept himself busy, sitting and watching the clock would be his own mental death knoll.

"Where are you?"

XXXXXXXX

"Nathan? Hey come on buddy the story wasn't that bad. Nathan? NATHAN!"

"Hey…yeah…"

"I know you're tired and cold…but um…" Severide tells him as he uses his free hand to try to rub some warmth into Nathan's legs, having emptied his backpack and covered his wounded arm with the fabric, reasoning that some cover and warmth was better than nothing.

"So do you…have a girlfriend?"

"Too…young," Nathan replies as Severide offers a strained smile; knowing the question was stupid but wanting to keep the boy awake and talking about anything.

"Do you?"

"Me…I am currently trying to avoid women."

"Gay?"

"What? Uh…no," Severide chuckles. "Bad luck," he quickly qualifies as Nathan offers a whispered, "okay,". "I just don't think I'm ready to commit yet. But…who knows…maybe if the right one comes along…" his voice trails off as he watches the dark figures moving outside the backhoe. As much as he wants to try to reach the screwdriver once more, it was dark and if it fell and he couldn't see where – hope would really be lost. Now he could only pray for one of two miracles. 1. Someone would finally come along and help them. Or 2. night would pass by quickly, they'd both wake up alive and ready to try again to escape. Both were bleak at best.

_This can't be the end…he can't die! HELP US!_

XXXXXXXX

The night for Casey is also long and tormented as he tries to sleep but is unable, choosing instead to do a few things to keep himself busy. He had tried both Kelly's home number and cell – nothing. He had gotten tired of calling Benny, who seemed too wrapped up with other things to give it much thought.

_Maybe it's me…maybe I'm just paranoid for nothing, _Casey's mind tries to reason as the daylight hours finally start to appear. He rubs his eyes and goes in search of some hot coffee; wanting to perk up and get his first day off started on the right note. But until he actually hears Kelly's voice telling him that it was no big deal and he's sorry he freaked everyone out, the day wouldn't be starting off on a good note – at all.

"Have you heard from Uncle Kelly yet?"

"No but um…"

"Matt!"

"Shay, have you heard from Kelly?"

"No. This isn't good."

"Where does he go jogging? Look after Griffin for me. I'll go check."

"Okay."

Casey pulls away at top speed, rushing for his truck once again, this time with a determined mission. _Come on Kelly….buddy you better be okay…you better have a good explanation for all this…._

He reaches the car park and spies Severide's mustang and goes to inspect. "Kelly!" He calls out and then listens. Silence. The car looks intact. He dials Kelly's cell number once more and listens again…this time...he hears…ringing.

"Where?" Casey quickly turns around, hurrying back to the car and pressing his ear against the window; his ear picking up the faint but distinct cry of his cell. "Chief I've found Kelly's car and his cell. He's not here…I'm going to keep looking." He races back to his truck and carries on, Shay telling him the path that Kelly most likely would have taken. His eyes scan the bleak landscape for something…anything resembling his friend in distress.

"Come on Kelly…" he mutters as he stops his truck and gets out, the rest of the way he'd have to continue on by foot. He reaches an open area and stops…picking up a few yips from coyotes and feeling his stomach instantly seize. _Oh god what if…._his mind spirals as he dares to picture himself coming upon the half eaten carcass of his close friend. He races toward the fenced in area and then stops, by passing the no trespassing sign and looking at the coyotes slowly circling the fallen backhoe. He squints and…

"Oh damn is that blood?"

"GET LOST! SHOOOO!"

"Wh….what the…" Severide's body quickly fumbles to get himself awake, hearing the familiar voice. "Matt?" He watches one of the coyotes scamper away but then silence. "Ah damn nothing…Nathan?"

Silence.

He quickly feels for a pulse. Weak but still there.

"KELLY!"

"MATT!" Severide calls back, his shouting slightly jerking Nathan but not fully waking him. "IN HERE! WE'RE TRAPPED IN HERE!"

Casey picks up a few stones and tosses them at the lingering coyote, finally sending the animal scurrying away so that he can approach the fallen backhoe. "Oh god…" he whispers in dread as he spies the fresh blood on the busted window. "Kelly!"

Severide looks up and can only shake his head in relief. "The seat his him trapped. Help pull this thing off so I can start this damn thing."

"You have a key?"

"No I have…just hurry."

Casey quickly dislodges the piece of metal, carefully but quickly pulling it free and allowing Severide to finally use his right hand. He tosses the piece of metal debris aside and then peers back inside.

"Brachial artery bleed. Not sure how much longer he can hold out."

"What do you need?"

"Be ready to leave when I get this damn thing upright."

Casey gives him a nod and then jumps back down, hurrying back to his truck as Severide finally manages to hotwire the backhoe, using the bucket on the front to help upright the large machine. Casey stops his truck just as Severide gets the backhoe in the proper position.

"I got him," Casey tells Severide as he carefully cradles Nathan in his grasp and both run toward his waiting truck. He carefully hands Nathan back to Severide and hurries to his side, starting up his truck and then calling Boden en route to Lakeshore.

"Shoulda had my phone," Severide mumbles as he looks down at Nathan's still frame in his grasp and then back up at Casey in defeat. "Matt…"

"I found you both now…he's going to be okay," Casey tells him with a firm nod. "Twenty four hours."

"Shoulda filed a missing persons."

"I think Boden did," Casey half smirks as they reach the entrance to the ER; Boden having called them so that a trauma team was already waiting to take the boy and get him into surgery.

"I need…"

"He'll be in surgery for at least an hour or two. Let's get you cleaned up a bit."

"Matt…"

"Kelly, how many times have you tended to me?"

"That's because you're a trouble maker," Severide gently smirks as Casey leads him to the men's washroom to at least clean away the dried blood.

"Today…that title is yours."

Severide looks at his weary expression in the mirror and then up at Casey's reflection watching him. "I nearly watched that young boy die. Matt I…"

"You did what any of us would have done. You saved his life. You stayed no matter what."

"He better pull through," Severide comments as he splashes his face with cold water to keep himself awake a bit longer.

"Let's see your hand," Casey mentions as he holds up a few bandages and some soft gauze. After that was done, the two of them head back out to the surgical waiting area, slumping down into nearby chairs to wait.

"How was Griffin's day at the House?"

"Good. He asked some great questions but…but he looked like he finally was at ease. He missed you."

"Yeah…I missed him. Damn I never thought I'd miss everyone as much as…I tell ya, when those coyotes showed up last night. Matt I was scared. Not for me, but for Nathan. He…his father left and…he was wanting to prove himself to the world…I've been there…I saw myself so many times when I was with him. I couldn't leave no matter what. I tried…a few times to go and get help but he…he nearly bled out on me twice. I couldn't leave him," his voice trails off as he quickly swallows. "Couldn't leave."

"You saved his life. Why not just close your eyes for a bit. I'll wake you when he's out."

Severide doesn't need to be told twice as he closes his eyes, instantly whisked away by fatigue into the dark realm of sleep. About a half hour later, Casey gently shakes his shoulder as Nathan appears; resting on a recovery bed and flanked by his mother, a nurse and the doctor.

"Hey buddy…" Severide greets Nathan with a warm smile.

_"Mom this is him…this is the man who saved my life."_

"I can't thank you…enough," she offers with a teary smile as she pulls Severide into her grasp and holds him close. "Thank you."

"You're welcome ma'am," Severide smiles before he looks at Nathan. "Firehouse 51. You remember. Anytime you want, come on down and I'll give you that ride."

"That would be great."

Severide offers one more hug to Nathan before he stands back and watches the small medical entourage heading toward a recovery room; Casey's hand giving his friend's back a small pat. "He made it."

"Come on, let's go."

Severide can only nod in weary agreement, allowing Casey to lead the way back to his truck and then back to his place where he'd get a few solid hours of sleep; wake up and be treated to a hearty Casey home cooked meal and then tell the whole sordid story to his friend and the two young boys staying with him. He was alive to tell the story and so was the young boy he found and that's all that mattered. And while he knows he's made a new young friend for life, what he is forced to acknowledge is in those long desperate and sometimes silent hours, trapped and alone – he wasn't just saving Nathan, he was saving himself.

**THE END!**

* * *

**A/N:** I would love your thoughts on this, as to me this is my weakest piece this season. I was really struggling a bit for inspiration after this eppy as our boys didn't even share one second of screen time together! (HELLO CF WRITERS WAKE UP AND SMELL THE BROMANACE!). Your reviews would mean the world so thank you in advance and fingers crossed the writers will get it right soon!


End file.
